The Government of India has named Mr. B.S. Baswan, Secretary, Secondary and Higher Education, Department of Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development, as its representative on COL's Board - succeeding Mr. S.C. Tripathi, who retired in August 2004. Mr. Baswan's distinguished career as a senior official in various Government of India ministries and agencies since the early 1980s has included being Secretary of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, the Ministry of Tribal Affairs and the National Commission for Minorities. He was also Director of the National Academy of Administration from 1996 to 2000. India is entitled to a seat on the Board by virtue of its status as a major donor.
The Chair of COL's Board of Governors, Dr. Lewis Perinbam, O.C., has also announced the reappointment for three-year terms of three Board members, whose current term of office expired at the end of 2003.
Dr. Tara de Mel, Secretary, Ministry of Education, Sri Lanka, as the regional appointment for Asia.
Professor Penina Mlama, Executive Director, Forum for African Women Educationalists (FAWE), as the regional appointment for Africa.
Senator, the Honourable Burchell Whiteman, Minister of Information, Jamaica, as the regional appointment for the Caribbean.
Her Excellency, Mrs. Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, the President of Sri Lanka (who currently also holds the Education portfolios), named Dr. de Mel as Education Secretary in April 2004. She is a former Secretary, Ministry of Education and Higher Education, former Vice Chairperson (Policy), National Education Commission and, most recently, was Advisor to Her Excellency the President.
Professor Mlama is a Professor of Theatre Arts and former Head of Department, Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Deputy Vice-Chancellor/Chief Academic Officer at the University of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania. With 33 chapters in in Sub-Saharan Africa, the Nairobi-based FAWE is engaged in improving access, retention and participation of girls in education in Africa (www.fawe.org).
Senator Whiteman was a long-serving Minister of Education and Culture prior to his becoming a Senator and taking on the Information portfolio.
Dr. John Rowett, the new Secretary General of the Association of Commonwealth Universities is now an advisor on COL's Board. He succeeds Dr. Michael Gibbons who retired as ACU's Secretary General in 2004.
www.acu.ac.uk
www.col.org/board
Mr. Rod Tyrer has been named Programme Director. He joined COL in March 2003 on a two-year secondment from the British Department for International Development (DFID), London and was responsible for assisting in the implementation of a Results-Based Management framework for the organisation. As Programme Director, Rod's role is to ensure that COL develops appropriate and relevant triennial plans and implements the approved programme in an effective, efficient and economical manner according to the principles of Results-Based Management.
Mr. Vis Naidoo was named a Finalist in the Policy category of the 2004 World Technology Awards. An Education Specialist with COL, Vis works with national ministries of education and educational institutions to support the development of ODL and ICT in education policies. As a Finalist, Vis becomes a member of the prestigious World Technology Network. The World Technology Network operates in association with NASDAQ, Microsoft, TIME Magazine and Science Magazine.
Dr. Peter Smith, President of California State University, Monterey Bay, is the new head of education for the United Nations. Dr. Smith has accepted the position of Assistant Director-General for Education at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). He is the first American to serve in this position. Sir John Daniel, President and CEO of COL, held the post most recently.
Dr. Smith was the founder and first president of the Community College of Vermont, served as a state senator and Lieutenant Governor of Vermont and as a member of the United States House of Representatives. Prior to joining California State University, Monterey Bay upon its founding ten years ago, Dr. Smith served as Dean of the School of Education and Human Development at George Washington University in Washington, DC. He begins his new job with UNESCO on 1 July 2005.
Dr. Lewis Perinbam, Chair of COL's Board of Governors, recently received an honorary degree (Doctor of Letters, Honoris Causa) from Brock University in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. The degree was awarded to Dr. Perinbam in recognition of his contribution to Canadian public life and his record of distinguished humanitarian service.
In his address upon receiving this, his fourth honorary doctorate, Dr. Perinbam called for "a new idealism inspired by knowledge and humility" to meet the complex and formidable challenges faced by the world today.
"You can be the architects of a more humane and just world," he told the graduating class. "You may not succeed in all that you attempt to do but do not let future generations say of you that you lacked the vision or the courage to have made the effort. In your hands lie our best hopes for the future. It is still a beautiful world."
An Officer of the Order of Canada, Dr. Perinbam has had a distinguished career in the Canadian federal public service, in international organisations, most notably the World Bank and UNESCO, and in the non-governmental and private sectors. www.col.org/speeches
The University of the South Pacific has announced that an international innovator in higher education, Professor Anthony A. Tarr, will be the University's next Vice-Chancellor.
Professor Tarr, who is widely recognised for his achievements as a senior university executive, is also an internationally acclaimed legal scholar. He is both a New Zealand and Australian national.
Professor Tarr is currently Executive Dean and Professor of Law at Indiana University in the United States. He is credited with successfully leading reforms at the University of Queensland as well as Indiana University, where he was able to substantially increase revenue streams for both those institutions.
He is expected to arrive in Suva to take up his post in June 2005.
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